STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A registered sex offender who fell off authorities’ radar earlier this year turned out to be living in the building next door from his last known address, according to authorities.

Jermaine Scott, 29, of Clifton, ended up back behind bars over the weekend, after police picked him up in connection with a domestic abuse incident, according to prosecutors.

Scott has been deemed a level-one sex offender, the state’s lowest risk level, following his conviction on third-degree rape charges in 2004.

He was 19 at the time of his September 2003 arrest, and his victim was younger than 15, according to prosecutors.

Scott’s name appeared in the Advance last May, as one of five Staten Island sex offenders who authorities couldn’t find at the address they listed on the state sex offender registry.

His last recorded address was at 260 Park Hill Ave., but court papers allege he hadn’t lived there for the past four years.

Rather, for at least a year, he was living at 280 Park Hill Ave., and never registered the new address, court papers allege.

Police learned of Scott’s whereabouts on Friday — a female acquaintance accused him of punching her in the face repeatedly, pulling her hair and knocking her to the ground on the corner of Targee Street and Vanderbilt Avenue at about 3 a.m.

He was arrested later that day, charged with third-degree assault, second-degree harassment and failing to register as a sex offender, according to Peter N. Spencer, a spokesman for District Attorney Daniel Donovan.

The registration charge is a felony with a maximum penalty of one and a third to four years in prison.

State law requires registered sex offenders to inform police whenever they change their addresses, while photos of offenders deemed a moderate or serious risk to the public can be found on a state website.

“As a Level 1 sex offender, the defendant knows he is required to notify the state Department of Criminal Justice Services within 10 days after he moves. He had not notified them for more than four years,” said Donovan. “The fact that he was actually living next door to the address on record only underscores how foolish and reckless he has been - because now he faces a serious felony charge. “

This past March, police and U.S. marshals performed a sweep, overseen by Donovan, of all 287 of the borough’s registered sex offenders.

All but nine complied by keeping their addresses up to date, as is required by Megan’s Law – which was adopted in various forms nationwide and named for Megan Kanka, a 7-year-old New Jersey girl killed in 1994 by a neighbor who was a convicted pedophile. Police had arrested four of those nine by early May, when authorities released the names of the remaining five to the media.

Jackson was convicted of sexual misconduct after having sex with a 15-year-old female acquaintance.

Those still missing include:

* Tywann Johnson, 24, a level-two offender convicted of sexual misconduct in 2006, after being arrested in upstate Gloversville and accused of having sex with a 15-year-old acquaintance. His last known address was on Staten Island, in a basement apartment at 26 Jake Court, in Stapleton.

* Carnell McCarden, 51, a level-two offender who was convicted in 1999 of third-degree rape. Public records say McCarden repeatedly had sex with a 15-year-old girl, and established a relationship with the girl to groom her for victimization. He also goes by the first name Goldie, and was last known to live at 35 York Ave., Apt. 3, in New Brighton.

* Beverly Astwood, 43, a level-one offender who was required to register after an unlawful imprisonment conviction stemming from a 2000 incident – Ms. Astwood was supposed to be baby-sitting a 1-year-old in a van parked outside Stapleton Criminal Court, but drove off before the mother came back. Police found her 10 hours later, and she admitted she had smoked crack in front of the boy. Her last known address was 110 North Burgher Ave., in West Brighton.